Welcome back to FitChatter! This week in the news: A list of the top 4 worst excuses for not eating healthy - plus tips you can use to overcome them when they come to mind!

Eating healthy is no piece of cake. It’s simple enough to do for a little while…but once we’re confronted with cookies and pies, it’s so easy for us to give in and let excuses to take over.

Well, no more! With a little bit of preparation, you can outsmart yourself when these excuses come to mind – and if you’re anything like me, they come to mind all too often.

“I deserve this.”/”I earned this splurge.”

This is a tough one, because we are typically conditioned for this behavior early on. (“Get an A on your report card and we’ll buy you ice cream!”)

The problem? Today’s “I deserve” is often tomorrow’s “I regret” – especially when you feel that you deserve it because you worked out. I don’t know about you, but I’m not a very good judge of how many calories I’ve burned, or how many calories are in that piece of lasagna. Chances are I’m going to overestimate the former and underestimate the latter.

What to do instead

By all means, eat that little bite of dark chocolate to celebrate a job well done, whether that be a workout or a promotion – but keep it in check. Don’t lose sight of the fact that what you really deserve is to be healthy.

“I’ve ruined it anyway – might as well go all the way.”

This excuse reminds me of playing the card game Hearts. For those unfamiliar with the game, points are bad – unless you get all the points, in which case it’s really beneficial. It’s called “shooting the moon,” and it’s very hard to do. Once, I played with a guy (I’ll call him Steve) who was trying to shoot the moon. He realized pretty early on that it wasn’t going to work out, since someone else had gotten a few points. His response? “Well, if I can’t shoot the moon, I’ll just get as close as I can!”

…Yeah.

It’s not a perfect analogy, but when you think about it, using this excuse is kind of like trying to shoot the moon, but shooting yourself in the foot instead.

What to do instead

Moral of the story? Don’t be Steve. If you realize you’re making a mistake, don’t keep going. Remember – it’s not all or nothing. You have control over every bite you put in your mouth.

“It’s okay for me to eat this, because I’m addicted.”

Let’s consider how this sounds when substituting anything other than food:

“It’s okay for me to get blackout drunk, because I’m an alcoholic!”

“It’s okay for me to shoot up heroin, because I’m a junkie!”

Hopefully I don’t need to explain why that reasoning is problematic.

What to do instead

If you genuinely have a problem with food, seek professional help. It’s simple, but not easy! Sometimes seeking help is the strongest thing you can do.

If you’re just exaggerating – and I say this as someone who has been known to make the “addiction” excuse on occasion – come on. Do you really want to use junkie logic?

“Life’s too short – eat what you want.”

This excuse has is half right: life is short. And by eating heavily-calorie-laden foods too often, you can make it even shorter. Diet, health, and lifespan are directly related, so by eating unhealthily, you’re gambling with your future – in a big way. There's nothing wrong with indulging a little bit once in a while, but it adds up quicker than you might think.

What to do instead

Make a bucket list! Write down all the things you’ve always wanted to do, and set your mind to do them. Remind yourself that eating healthy is one way you can help ensure that you’ll live to accomplish those goals.

Now, if I could just stop making excuses for not working out…

What do you say, FitChatters?

Did any of those excuses sound familiar?

What do you do to fight off the urge to eat unhealthy foods?

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